Busted Knuckles: 1964 Ford F100

F100 Conglomerate: A ’64 Ford Built from Seven Other Trucks

Building classic trucks can present some unique challenges to the builder. Since they have been around longer, there is more of a chance of severe oxidation, accident damage, and several other problems, which will, hopefully, be discovered during teardown. David Cross, of Anderson, South Carolina, ran into some of these challenges when building his 1964 Ford F-100. He originally owned a ’64 with 120,000 miles on it, and began building a frame from another F-100 that he could swap that donor truck’s engine and transmission into. Well, as things would have it, the front of the frame he bought had been damaged in an accident. So he bought another frame, and the back of that frame had been damaged also. After several different purchases and some choice words, David eventually had all the parts he needed to build the truck to completion. The parts came from about seven different trucks, but at least all the parts were there. David took all of the parts to Palmetto Rod Worx, also in Anderson, where the truck was going to be completed.

After piecing together the two different frames, the team at Palmetto Rod Worx boxed the whole thing with steel plate and fabricated a C-notch into the rear. The front of the frame was also Z’d for more room to lay out. With all of the cutting and grinding on the frame complete, it was painted gray for a clean look. For the suspension up front, David had a Mustang II clip bolted on with a set of Heidts drop spindles and control arms. Out back, a custom four-link was built to facilitate laying out the ol’ Ford. An Accuair air-ride system was installed along with a set of Slam Specialties RE-7 ‘bags and Gabriel shocks for a low, smooth ride. To wrap up the chassis, David enveloped a set of 20-inch Boss 338 wheels in BFGoodrich g-Force rubber, 245/35R20 up front and 265/35R20 out back.

With the frame complete, an engine and transmission could be installed. Forgoing installing the engine and transmission from his original F-100, David decided on a 460ci engine out of a ’72 Lincoln along with a Ford C6 transmission. To the engine, David bolted on a Weiand intake manifold, Holley carb, Moroso oil pan, and Griffin radiator for superior cooling. To crank out a few more ponies, the engine was bored to .030 over, the heads were ported and polished, and a Comp cam, and DUI distributor were installed. To brighten up the engine compartment, a set of Trick Flow valve covers, polished intake, and powdercoated water pump have been installed. The engine sends its power through the C6 to a Ford 9-inch in the rear outfitted with Richmond 3.50 gears. The engine expels the hot exhaust gasses through a set of L&L ceramic-coated headers, 3-inch tubing and MagnaFlow mufflers. The engine will sip gas from a 28-gallon stainless steel fuel cell that sits between the rear framerails.

Compared to the chassis, the body is fairly simple. The side emblems, antenna, and fuel filler were shaved. The hood was converted to a forward-tilt unit and the whole body was smoothed. For paint, David is going to go with a simple two-tone, with blue on the bottom and gray on top.

Still to come is a full custom interior, custom audio, and paint. David says he plans to show the truck when it is complete, but it’s by no means going to be a trailer queen. David is building this truck to drive. We cannot wait to see the finished product and hope you will check back to see the Truckin’ feature later this year.